Raupenschlepper Ost – RSO Tractor

Raupenschlepper Ost – RSO Tractor.

Raupenschlepper Ost (RSO), a fully tracked vehicle of the German Wehrmacht, specially designed for transporting supplies for troops fighting on the Eastern Front. Given the difficult terrain, adverse weather conditions, and poorly developed communications in the former Soviet Union, the mobility of wheeled vehicles was so limited, especially during the trackless “Rasputiza” mud periods in spring and autumn, that the Wehrmacht had to resort to captured Soviet tractors.

It became immediately apparent that a fully tracked transport had to be developed specifically for the Wehrmacht. The commercially available, light all-terrain truck Steyr 1500A (4×4) supplied the engine and many of the components needed for the new vehicle, so that production of the Raupenschlepper Ost Type 470 tractor could begin as early as September 1942.

Available Scale Model Kits

  • Steyr RSO/01 Raupenschlepper Ost 1,5 t, 1:35 Das Werk 35026
  • Steyr RSO/01 Raupenschlepper Ost 1,5 t, 1:35 Italeri 6549
  • Steyr RSO/01 Raupenschlepper Ost 1,5 t, 1:72 ACE 72205
  • Steyr RSO/01 Raupenschlepper Ost 1,5 t, 1:72 Modelkrak 020
  • Steyr RSO/01 und 7.5 cm PaK 40, 1:72 Plastic Soldier WW2G20005
  • Raupenschlepper Ost Ambulance, 1:72 ACE 72207
  • Steyr RSO/01 Workshop Vehicle, 1:72 Modelkrak MK224
  • Steyr RSO/01 Amphibian, 1:72 Modelkrak MK225
  • Steyr RSO/01 Raupenschlepper Ost 1,5 t (late cab), 20 mm BP Cast GR116
  • Steyr RSO/01 Raupenschlepper Ost 1,5 t, 20 mm RAFM
  • Steyr RSO/01 Raupenschlepper Ost 1,5 t (early cab), 1:76 Hinchliffe 20/90
  • Steyr RSO/01 Raupenschlepper Ost 1,5 t (late cab), 1:76 Hinchliffe 20/91
  • Steyr RSO/01 Raupenschlepper Ost 1,5 t, 1:76 Cromwell
  • Steyr RSO/01 Raupenschlepper Ost 1,5 t, 1:76 Ostmodels G4
  • Steyr RSO/01 Raupenschlepper Ost 1,5 t, 1:76 Milicast G26
  • Steyr RSO/01 Raupenschlepper Ost 1,5 t, 1:87 miniTanks 690
  • KHD/Magirus RSO/03 Cargo, 1:87 miniTanks 725
  • 2 cm Flak 38 on Sfl. Steyr RSO/01, 1:72 ACE 72254
  • 7,5 cm PaK 40 on Sfl. Steyr RSO/01, 1:72 Modelkrak 019
  • 7,5 cm PaK 40 on Sfl. Steyr RSO/01, 20 mm BP Cast GR118
  • 7,5 cm PaK 40 on Sfl. Steyr RSO/01, 20 mm RAFM

Technical Specifications

  • Raupenschlepper Ost – RSO
  • Motor: air-cooled V8 Petrol Engine, 3517 cm³ and 85 hp (63 kW)
  • Speed: 17 km/h (bzw. 14 km/h RSO/3)
  • Transmission: 4 forward and 1 reverse
  • Length: 4425 mm
  • Width: 1990 mm
  • Height: 2530 mm
  • Track Width: 1350 mm
  • Weight: 3700 kg
  • Payload: 1500 kg
  • Production: 1942–1944

Museum Exhibits

  • Raupenschlepper Ost, Technik-Museum Sinsheim

Historical Employment

Possible Conversions

The Raupenschlepper Ost is an unusual and interesting vehicle, a must-have for collectors, modellers and wargamers.

German Miniatures of World-War Two